The arts tax has been bogged down in legal challenges since the moment it was placed on the November 2012 ballot. So far, though, so good.

In 2012, its ballot title was challenged -- but the tax was upheld.

More recently, it came under fire from two fronts. The first was from Lewis & Clark law professor Jack Bogdanski. He had argued that the arts tax violates the Oregon Constitution, which prohibits
"poll" or "head" taxes.

His case was thrown out of court when the judge ruled that the Oregon Tax Court

However, Circuit Judge Kelly Skye ruled that "the Arts Tax is not a Poll or Head tax because it is not assessed per capita."

After the suits were filed, Mayor Charlie Hales decided it to hold off on issuing any of the tax dollars. This had created something of a problem for Portland-area schools that had been expecting the money to
help fund art instructors.

In a statement on Thursday decision, Hales' spokesman Dana Haynes said the mayor planned to reach out to superintendents right away "to explain the ruling and to discuss next steps."

"Asked and answered," Hales said in the release. "Can the challenges be appealed? Yes, but we don't know that they will. We want to wait to hear from the city attorney regarding our best options, and then we want to get the input of the entire City Council before moving forward."